Lan Jia Gua Bao

Stuff slow-braised pork into a pita-like steamed bun with pickled mustard, cilantro leaves and peanuts pulverized with sugar and you’ve got gua bao, a snack often called a Taiwanese hamburger...

ADDRESS

No. 3, Alley 8, Lane 316, Roosevelt Road, Sec. 3, Taipei, Taiwan

The Overview

Stuff slow-braised pork into a pita-like steamed bun with pickled mustard, cilantro leaves and peanuts pulverized with sugar and you’ve got gua bao, a snack often called a Taiwanese hamburger but actually more closely related to a southern American comfort food classic: the pulled pork sandwich. On weekends and evenings, the queue snaking from Lan Jia Gua Bao, near Taipei University, can stretch half a block as staff work double time filling pillowy buns pulled from mammoth bamboo steamers with pork so tender it falls apart in succulent shreds. Specify fatty or lean meat and get your gua bao to go, or devour it inside alongside a bowl of the equally popular corn and pork rib soup.